Internet Explorer 6 - Can anyone help please?

I don't have a clue on what i've done to this but it ain't working. I'm running Windows XP Home Edition, 2.4 Ghz P4 processor. When i open IE it starts loading the home page (hotmail). But it doesn't ever work so i tried another website but the same problem. I've restarted the PC and the net (AOL 8.0) but nothing seems to work. Any help would be appreciated.CheersG